A Polaroid Allegory
by goddessoftea
Summary: This is a collection of anecdotes and moments, a series of mini-stories (or less) from varying heroes' perspectives. There's a little bit of everything: funny, sad, thoughtful, romantic (!) and rabble. (Probably a lot of rabble, knowing me ;)) Enjoy!
1. Vengeance

The bathroom mirror was foggy, opaque with the steam from Archie's shower. The air was thick with mist, like a sauna as Archie dried himself off after his shower. At least Neil wasn't here to whistle or something. The whole team knew exactly when Neil was in the shower, thanks to his musical grooming habits.

As he towelled off his re-dyed hair, Archie glanced in the mirror. Sure, you never could tell what colour your hair was when it was wet. But was it normally this… pink?

Archie squinted at his reflection, rubbed away some of the fog on it to try and see better. No, no way. It was definitely _not _purple though. He grabbed the bottle of dye from the bin- maybe there'd been a mistake? Had someone switched it while he wasn't watching?

_Lightning purple, _the packet said.

Archie glanced in the mirror again. Whatever colour his hair was, it sure as hell wasn't purple.

**_*earlier that day*_**

"Ugh, I've had it! If Archie's going to be like this, I'm leaving." Theresa had huffed as she stood in the kitchen, Archie having made fun of Theresa again when she had a vision. It wasn't her fault that she had to be the team's television aerial for the future, was it? She'd quite happily turn off her psychic powers for some time, if she could.

"You know, he doesn't know what it's like to have to be the fortune teller EVERY HOUR OF THE DAY." She grumbled again. "Maybe Archie could try being the team's psychic for once? Maybe he could try being mocked every time some stupid vision came into his head." She pouted, arms crossed. Neil stood at the other end of the kitchen, fiddling with his mirror absentmindedly.

"Well, are you gonna say anything, Neil? You heard the him harassing me!"

Neil turned to look at Theresa, a faint smile on his face. Theresa raised her eyebrows.

"What?" She demanded.

"Well, you know," Neil began slowly, "you could get revenge on him. I mean, he does deserve it."

"And how am I meant to do that?"

Neil grinned. "Well, Archie's going to dye his hair soon. Tonight, even."

"Really?" Theresa asked. "How do you know that?"

"Honey, puh-lease. His roots have been visible for weeks. It's definitely time for a touch up."

"I'm listening. But what are we meant to do while Archie dyes his hair? Ransack his room? Steal his skateboard? Burn his study notes?"

"Theresa, please. You have got to give me more credit. Now, imagine if Archie's hair was to go a colour other than purple." At that, a wicked grin crept across Theresa's face.

"I'm in. What do you need me to do?"

"Pick a colour." At that, Theresa smiled even more. She even chuckled evilly.

"Candy floss pink."

**_*present*_**

"Alright, who did this?!" Archie yelled, standing in front of the bathroom. At Archie's yell, Herry's head leant out of his room.

"Archie, dude, is your hair normally that colour?" He asked, cracking up with laughter. Archie's frowned, glaring at Herry.

"You think I'd _choose_ to let my hair go candy-freaking pink?!"

"Oi, Odie, come and look! Archie's hair is pink!"

"Hey, I am not a zoo animal! You did this!" Archie growled, as Odie poked his head out of his room too.

"Hey, nice hair Archie!" Guffawed Odie, as a fit of laughter seized him. He doubled over, heading back into his room, the rough tinkling of his laughter audible even through his closed door. Archie frowned even harder now. Archie went to speak again, but was cut off by Odie, speaking between fits of laughter.

"Candy-" He cracked up again. "It looks like cotton-" Odie grabbed his tummy. "Cotton candy!"

Herry was still laughing too. "Hey, Arch, can I feel your hair? I wanna know if it feels like fairy floss as well as looking like it!" Herry's ribs shook with the laughter as he crouched over, rolling onto his back on the floor. Archie slammed the bathroom door shut. Odie and Herry scarcely noticed.

The team sat sprawled across the various lounges and chairs of the lounge room, about to put their weekly Friday night movie on.

"Hey, where's Archie?" Asked Atlanta. "He never misses movie night."

Herry grinned, chuckling at the memory. "He's, ugh, had a wardrobe malfunction." Theresa and Neil shared a smile across the room, but otherwise remained impassive.

"What do you mean?" Asked Atlanta. "He always wears the same clothes. How could he have a wardrobe issue?"

At that moment, Archie shyly walked in. The whole team turned to face him, and a smile began to paint each of their faces. He was a sight: the dye had worked perfectly. His hair was a fluffy pink, and looked like you could just pull a piece of candy right off it. In contrast with the light, happy shade of his hair, Archie's face was scrunched into a frown and his arms were crossed tightly. He was an angry toad with a crown of pink, and he was glaring at the team.

"Who did this?!" He spat angrily. "I can't leave the house-" Maybe Archie would have finished his sentence, except for the bubbling, uncontrollable giggles that rose from Theresa.

"Pink!" She wheezed, doubling over in her seat. Herry joined in too now, and Odie.

"That-" puffed Neil between chortles, "does NOT suit your complexion!" Then Neil too was lost to the laughter.

Archie looked over to Atlanta for support, only to see that she was holding her ribs as if her life depended on them. "Archie, even I wouldn't go _that_ pink!" She giggled, grinning at him. Archie glared back at her. Some friend she was. He surveyed the room angrily, as all six of the teenagers were seized with giggles, unable to look at him for more than a moment before they lost it again. Archie looked around for someone, anyone who might support him.

"Fine." He huffed. "I'm not leaving the brownstone until it goes back to purple." Archie stamped his foot for effect, but the team were all biting their lips as if trying to hold something in.

"Archie, don't be a sour puss." Atlanta goaded.

"Yea, Arch, you gotta have a personality that matches your hair now." Said Jay, grinning.

"This had better be temporary." Archie spat.

"Nope, it's permanent!" Yelled Neil. The team descended into a chaos of laughter again. They just couldn't get enough of it, could they? Archie grumbled inwardly. He turned on his heel, ready to retreat for a quiet night on his own. At least his bed wouldn't laugh at him.

As he retreated, a pair of lithe, light footsteps followed Archie into the kitchen. He turned around now, out of view of the rest of the team, expecting to see Atlanta. Instead, his not-so-favourite red head, her long hair matching her flushed cheeks, was right behind him. Maybe Theresa was here to apologise? Hey, Archie might even take an apology from _her, _on a day like today.

"So, Archie," she began, grinning. "How does it feel to be made fun of for something you have no control over?"

"It- it was you!" Archie gasped. Her green eyes flashed dangerously at him.

"Don't worry, it's actually only semi permanent. Wouldn't want you to suffer too long." She said acidly, smiling like a cheshire cat. "Just long enough." She turned on her heel, heading back to the lounge room.

Archie sighed. _You win this one, Theresa._


	2. Camping

The cicadas were just beginning to buzz their vibratory songs through the air, and dusk was falling. The group was camped in a fairly large clearing, the forest to their left. It loomed at them, not uninviting, trees spaced out and paths evident. The stars were beginning to shine, the air still warm as if kissed by summer. Odie was tending the fire, adding tinder logs as he crouched over it's warmth. Neil sat next to him, hands held as if worshipping the light, eyes closed with the bliss of the warmth of the fire. It wasn't really necessary given how warm the night was, but the group loved the feeling of the campfire. It had been a unanimous agreement to light it.

Herry stood a few metres away from the four tents, chopping the firewood, axe swinging through the air. Like most guys, Herry seemed more than happy to do anything that created or maintained fire. Atlanta and Archie were off patrolling the perimeter, Atlanta wanting some practice at tracking various animals. The whole group had fought hard to stop themselves rolling their eyes when the two declared they were off, and burst into delicious, heaving laughter the minute they were out of earshot. Theresa had punched Herry, hard, when he began to yell, "Have fun!" at the top of his lungs. It was as Herry was rubbing his shoulder that the group had erupted into laughter.

Theresa had been sitting outside her tent, away from the group. She was supposed to be meditating, trying to sense if anything out of the ordinary was happening or present. But the warm air was so lovely, and the sounds of life and hustle from the group so calming, she had simply stood and watched them for a moment after she finished. The peace she felt in the bush was wonderful: her powers were much magnified. She knew roughly where Archie and Atlanta were, having sensed them many metres into the undergrowth. But nothing else.

The psychic world had felt to Theresa like a warm desert, but comforting. She had felt the calm, living processes of the animals in the bush, hunting or sleeping or caring, and the human emotions stood like pinpricks among the hubbub of bush life. But nothing as evil, nor as powerful, as a God. But she felt in touch with the psychic world of the bush. It welcomed her, and Theresa felt that if anything were out of the ordinary, she would be aware of it in the tiniest moment without having to search for it.

Theresa pushed off the ground, getting to her feet to rejoin the group. Jay was out for a walk, and Theresa was glad he was taking some time out. Herry was just finishing up chopping wood, and was carrying a huge pile of logs to the fire. Theresa wasn't quite sure how the pile didn't overbalance in Herry's arms. Theresa sat in front of the warm fire on a rather large log Herry had dumped. It was now burning quite happily, although Odie didn't seem able to resist adjusting it. Neil wore some kind of protective jacket. Theresa supposed it was to stop the fire burning little holes in his clothes, as had occurred the previous night. The ensuing affair had been fairly comical as Neil begged each member of the team for answers on how to repair his shirt, rushing around. Archie had remarked that if only Neil was so fast when Chronos was around, the God wouldn't stand a chance.

"Did you find anything, Theresa?" Asked Odie, as he added a log to the top of the fire.

"Nope, nothing. It's great- my powers are magnified out here." She leant back, as if to relax. Gosh, it was nice out here in the bush.

"Yea, this is the best place ever. I reckon we need to do more of this group stuff." Put in Herry, as he rubbed his hands together. He grabbed a log to sit on too. But scarcely a moment after her sat down, he leapt back up.

"Splinter!" He said in a surprisingly high-pitched tone (for a guy), and was madly rubbing his butt, trying to find it. His hands were gentle, but desperate, and he stood on his tippy toes as if to be more delicate. The tableau was ridiculous. At that moment, Archie and Atlanta came running in from the woods, Archie slightly ahead.

"Beat 'cha!" He yelled at Atlanta, whom was puffing, hands on knees, as she stopped at the campfire next to Archie.

"You can't just-" she puffed, "call a race like that." Archie grinned. Herry, ever one to ruin couple moments unknowingly, tip toed over to Archie.

"Arch, can you tell me if there's a splinter?" He stuck his butt out at Archie, not seeming to realise how odd it all was. The two guys stood there for a moment, Archie tall and awkward, hands up as if to say "No thanks!", and Herry with his back arched and butt stuck out, head turned to look at Archie with great concern. Theresa couldn't stop the giggle that rose in her, and burst out laughing first. The group looked at her, about to laugh too. But as Theresa threw her head back in laughter, she felt a rush of vertigo as her centre of gravity shifted to somewhere behind the log. She felt her bum sliding past the wood, her feet up in the air, still laughing.

"Ooh!" She went, as her back hit the ground. The group rose into laughter, the sound tickling the ears of everyone around them. Theresa laughed even harder, at herself. The ground was soft, her smile hurting from all the laughter. She began to push herself back onto her log.

"Hey guy- did I miss something?" Asked Jay, quizzical.

"Herry got a splinter in his butt." Said Atlanta, arms wrapped around her torso, still slightly bent over from the laughter.

"Yea, and then Theresa took a tumble." Added Odie, still laughing himself. Theresa was dusting herself off, brushing the dirt lightly off her arms and back. She smiled sheepishly at Jay as she sat herself back down on the log.

"Guys, the splinter's still there!" Herry informed the group in a sing song voice. "Jay, can you just get it out? These guys seem to think it's funny." Herry shuffled over to Jay, whom, sighing, spoke.

"Herry, I'm not the right one for that…"

"Fine, Herry, come over here, I'll get it out. Cry baby." Added Atlanta, beckoning Herry over. Herry obliged, and within a minute the splinter was gone.

"Thanks Atlanta. At least someone here has some maturity." Grumbled Herry pointedly. A chuckle ran around the group as Jay grabbed a log and sat opposite Theresa, next to Odie whom was sitting back, proud of his handiwork. People began to get the idea, and the group soon surrounded the camp fire.


	3. Sprints

The whole team was always in awe of Atlanta's speed. Most people were, when she met them. They gave her compliments, gasped, did all those things people do when they truly want you to know they're admiring of you. Atlanta had never had a coach -somehow, revealing her powers didn't seem like a great idea- but she ran often, and once she'd arrived at the Brownstone her speed had improved exponentially now that she was properly training.

The team always seemed to accept that Atlanta would always be fast, faster than anyone. It was a crown they placed upon her head no matter how quick Atlanta was feeling that day. Everyone always seemed to just _think_ Atlanta was quick, but they never seemed to understand the process behind her training. Atlanta loved the fight, but she loathed the fear of being beaten.

Sprinting was funny like that, Atlanta reflected as she lay puffing on the ground, knees in the air. As she raced people, she felt that crazy pulse of speed as she just pushed her chest ahead of them. Fear picked up her knees, made her legs bounce quickly off the track as she out paced everyone she ever knew. It was a great feeling to pass them, but once they began again for another race, the fear of losing returned again. She rolled over now, getting up to run one more 150m sprint before the session was over. Training this hard felt good, in it's own way. Ares had set a red laser to move at the pace Atlanta needed to run at (no one else was going to be any good). Most days, Atlanta wished she could slow the thing down. Even now, her legs hurt to walk on. The lactic acid was building as it always did, making her muscles feel like this weird mix of acid and jelly.

The last one pushed Atlanta. She made it over the line though, just ahead of that frustrating laser beam, arms pumping to propel her ahead of it, stumbling after the line. She lay on her back, arms spread out, chasing her breath.

Everyone respected Atlanta's speed, but no one quite noticed the amount of work behind it. The sore, aching muscles. The tension headaches after training. That sensation of arms tingling as she tried to finish it off, her breath racing too fast ahead of her to keep up. The thought of doing it all again soon enough.

As her breath began to slow a little, Atlanta heard footsteps tapping into the gym. And there was only one person she knew whom walked with a creak, as if one ankle wore a metal brace. She closed her eyes, relaxing. _It's over for today,_ Atlanta told herself. _You can relax now._

"Training too hard for you again, Lanta?" Came that teasing voice. Atlanta's eyes opened as she lifted her arm off the ground to flip him the bird."I could beat you in my sleep!" She yelled, despite having barely enough breath already.

_Like hell I could right now…_


	4. Hate

AN: Massive thanks to HoneyGoddess for the review, and to all readers. I'm not really an AxA fan, but I've decided to try and give it a go.

Atlanta had hated Archie at first. Stereotyped him instantly: weak, insecure guy with an ego longer than his dick. And he'd lived right up to that reputation at first. Skulking off, pretending he was "patrolling" (whatever that was meant to mean), refusing to join in, and generally being a douche. Atlanta wasn't someone with a lot of patience back then. She'd become quickly frustrated with the boy's antics. If you were scared, you swallowed it and kept on. Don't do this half-assed "I'm leaving" business and then turn right back around. Her time spent in team sports had taught her that if you were in a team, you stayed. And if you wanted to leave: great, but be decent about it.

She'd had more respect for Jay at first. He was cool, calm, authoritative. Not quite her type, sure, but still an interesting guy and someone she could easily talk to. They bonded easily, and they had a simple friendship that Atlanta sometimes wished Archie might take note of. Jay didn't go around trying to prove his masculinity, fighting people (well, not much). Archie seemed to have missed the "girls actually want you to be yourselves and act like people" thing. Where Archie aimed to impress, Jay didn't seem to need to satiate his ego.

And, yet, as time drew on Atlanta found herself more and more drawn to this insecure kid. Living in such close proximity, she began to understand that his quick remarks were more a shield than a dagger, and she didn't always mind that he doted on her. She still remembered that day when the team was packing up, ready to leave (they were so silly to think Cronus vanquished. Like, really?) and he tried awkwardly to say good bye. She'd fished him out of his awkwardness as she usually had to, smiling kindly. _Maybe I do like him, _she'd thought briefly. It wasn't long before she found herself acting more and more in his favour.

Yes, all his feisty attacks were kind of annoying, and Atlanta was positive he was trying to assert his male dominance or whatever. But soon she found herself playing along. It was fun to race him, to have a partner to skate with and watch action or horror movies alongside. He was a guy of two poles: on one hand, he had such a hard shell and sometimes it pissed Atlanta off. Other times, he was meek and afraid enough that Atlanta couldn't help but appreciate her own calm strength. She wasn't blind to his affections: she just wasn't sure if she was ready for them. Archie carried with him a mixed bag of emotions, both daggers and diamonds. Sometimes he was such a shallow guy, goading her, but he was learning. Learning to listen to what she wanted to protest about, to her concerns, showing weakness. Occasionally she'd even caught glimpses of his poetry books, annotated and bookmarked with care and precision. Atlanta still wasn't totally decided as to whether Archie had meant for her to see them or not.

He was a difficult guy, Archie, but he was slowly learning. Learning to use love and kindness to connect with people, rather than shrugging them off with a slew of insults and indifference. Archie had a great vulnerability about him, and Atlanta felt like she was helping him come to terms with it. And in turn, he was opening his eyes to the world around him that little more.

Who knew: maybe Archie would even reach the stage when Atlanta could explain to him that she was a feminist.

But she didn't want to push him too hard.

Does anyone have any requests? I don't know, certain characters or scenes (e.g. school life or learning to drive or family lives) they'd like me to write about?


	5. Heckling

"Theresa, did you break into Persephone's mind yet?" The question was more of a heckle, aimed at Theresa, quick and frustrated.

"Oh, yea Jay, maybe while I was studying for that school exam, or doing combat training with Ares, or helping Hermes use the portal to locate people, or being spoken to by Hera about how important it is that I learnt to read Cronus' mind. Or when I was hanging out with my friends- oh, wait, Jay! That never happens." Theresa was unhappy. More than that, she was over it. Couldn't the gods see what they were doing to the heroes? Jay's frustration only arose when the gods let him feel the pressure. They should know better. It wasn't Theresa's job to fix it up every time they pushed him too hard. Theresa had herself to worry about.

"Theresa, you know why we can't-"

Theresa cut him off.

"Yes, I do Jay." She sighed, trying to calm herself down a bit.

"I just meant that no, I haven't managed it. Sorry." she added. Theresa was pretty frustrated with the situation, but she knew better than to snap back at Jay.

"When do you think it will happen? Soon? A week? A month?"

He really was persistent, thought Theresa. Surely he would get the message soon, that maybe he shouldn't be pushing so much.

"Jay, it's not learning to throw a sword or aim a high kick. It's breaking into the mind of a God. It's never been done. It may never be done, although Persephone seems pretty determined."

"You have to learn how to. We need you to have that ability, Theresa. You've got to work at it. We have to beat Cronus."

Theresa felt like punching Jay- it was not an unrecognisable feeling, given how often she'd felt this way recently.

"Yes, Jay, and we have to survive the process too." She turned on her heel, unable to take any more of his harassment. She felt Jay sigh angrily, and wished she could make him feel better. But right now, she could barely keep herself going.


	6. Weak

_I-I like Atlanta. And I want her to be my girlfriend._

The words sounded scary enough in Archie's head, let alone out loud. How could he possibly admit that he had a crush on her? Oh no, no no no. He couldn't. Archie wasn't stupid. He might have made his slip ups, but he learnt from them. He'd been burned by love once before, and he wasn't silly enough to repeat such a stupid, amateur mistake. No, Archie was a warrior. He was above this stupid, immature game of love.

Right?

_Yes, yea I am. I'm above this stupid game. I gotta focus on beating an immortal god… I don't have time for this. I can't have a split focus…_

But even as Archie thought the words, he knew he didn't quite agree. After all, Jay was the freakin' leader and he still seemed to find time for Theresa. Gosh, if only it was as easy between Archie and Atlanta as it was between those two. Jay was always so nervous about it all, but he had no reason to be. I mean, the two got along so easily. _Like you and Atlanta…_

No, shut up! Archie told his brain.

The truth was that Atlanta, well, she wasn't like other girls… Oh god, that sounded bad. Archie knew if Atlanta caught him saying that, she'd punch his face in. "We're all different, you know" she'd say, punching him playfully. Or worse, she'd do that thing where she grinned so mischievously and just say, "Oh, come on, you can do better than that Archie!".

Either way, it would feel like a stab wound to the chest. Didn't she understand what it was like to be afraid of rejection? Or, or afraid of not being liked back? Then again, maybe she didn't know the feeling. She didn't seem the lovey-dovey type. Anyway, since when would she ever have loved someone who wasn't head over heels for her? Atlanta was too tough for all this business, and so was Archie.

Oh, who was he kidding.

Archie had never met someone as gutsy as Atlanta. He'd sort of just thought all girls were the same: make up obsessed, wimpy, flicking their stupid long hair and batting their pretty eyelashes, saying anything that would make guys smile. And Archie never had minded that… they were cute, and they were easy to be with. He didn't need to make crazy conversation or do that stupid "being yourself" or "getting all deep" thing that everyone talked about. He didn't mind it when they just giggled sweetly at his jokes or adored his muscles, and it definitely turned him on.

Until he met Atlanta, that is.

She seemed to expect more of Archie. He realised quickly that he couldn't just slap her butt or make some sexist joke she could laugh at. Not without getting beaten up, that is. He wouldn't just get giggled at when the conversation was in a lull, and he couldn't get away with lying or ignoring her when he wasn't interested. Again, that would earn him a kick, or a flick on the shoulder. And despite all this, Archie had been hooked on something about Atlanta for a very long time.

Maybe it was her red hair. Or how fast she ran. Or the fact that they could go boarding together and she didn't fill the silence with stuff Archie didn't care about. Or how when she laughed, it was genuine. Or if he made a joke, she'd give him a quip of her own. Or how she was so easy to spar with, or how she wasn't afraid of water or rejection like Archie was. All the girls he'd ever dated, Archie had been the one who was big and brave- they wanted "saving". With Atlanta, it was the opposite. And Archie wasn't sure he minded.

Atlanta was the first girl who was a true friend to Archie, and ironically the first girl he felt something towards that he could only call "love".

_You really like her, don't you._ Thought Archie. Oh, yes. Whatever. He did like her. A whole lot. _Probably a whole lot more than she likes me._ He thought glumly. _Well, maybe if you gave her a sign or something…_

That was it. He was going to do it. He was going to ask Atlanta out to dinner. And, and not with friends. Just them. It was going to be a date. And, and he'd make that clear too. Right?

He marched out of his room, determined to ride this wave of confidence. After all, it wasn't likely to last. Archie had to seize the moment. Carpe Diem, and all that. _Come on, Archie. You can do this._ His hand went to knock on her door, shaking slightly. Archie gulped. _What if I can't even talk? Or if I phrase it wrong, or-_

"Come in!" Came her warm voice. He was stuck now. _You got this, come on._ His hand, sweaty already, grasped the door handle and twisted, warming the cold metal. He pushed it open, to see Atlanta sitting at her desk, various books and pens and pencils scattered across the desk that was already covered with papers. Atlanta wasn't one for organisation. Especially not when she became stressed.

"Archie, hey."

_Now or never, kid._

"Hey, Atlanta, I was wondering if you'd like to go-"

Atlanta's eyes flashed to him quickly, her mouth beginning a small, shocked smile.

"T-to the gym with me, to get an extra session in before physical testing tomorrow. We don't have to, if you're busy." Archie added quickly, seeing Atlanta's face fall.

"No, it's cool, I'll be down there in half an hour." She gave him a smile, weakly though. _Why, why did I have to stuff it up again? _

"Okay… see you there." Archie quickly shut the door, biting his lip angrily.

_What is wrong with me?_


	7. Rain

**So, here I am, publishing again ^-^. This was inspired by Taylor Swift's song Clean- yes, I am a swiftie. And now y'all know it. Please review, it makes my day!**

Long red tendrils of hair spilled across her eyes as Theresa placed the old, leather-bound book of spells and witchcraft into the cardboard box. The room was quiet, the pitter-patter of rain drumming on her ears. Dust, itchy to the eyes and sticky to the fingers, mingled with mist of rain in the cool air from the window. Theresa looked down at the box: in it, CD's and books were stacked neatly, squished in with tissues to make sure they didn't get damaged while in transit. Her fingers caressed the books that had lined her shelf in her time at the Brownstone, remembering how each morning her eyes would dart across the familiar titles and remind Theresa of home.

After yet another battle with the heroes, Cronus had vanished. Gods knew where: though not literally. In the period after that, the team had waited and waited for the call to battle again when he resurfaced. But after six months, the Gods considered the battle won. It was time to go home.

Theresa didn't mind leaving any more. After that last fight, Jay had slipped further into his obsessive habits. His time with people dwindled, replaced by time spent brooding, crouching over books, harassing the team to train and fix their faults. For a while Theresa had tried to support Jay, ignored his verbal assaults, but eventually she'd found herself confronting him when she couldn't take it any more.

His response wasn't romantic, or dramatic, or anything worth remembering. It was angry, coarse and from the throat, words spat with frustration and laced with tiredness. Theresa had simply walked out and closed his door quietly. She was too tired to "fix" Jay again, and he was too unrelenting to ask for help.

And now, it was over. Rain pattered softly against the window she had left open, spattering the window sill with the comfortingly wet, warm smell that accompanies rain. The room was bare but for her bed and the box she continued to fill. She took deep breaths. _I can't believe it ended on this note._ She thought as she duct taped her last box shut, and carried the heavy thing down the stairs and into the small van that would carry her possessions to her new apartment in Paris. It was her dream to move to the city, and she was ready to start a new life.

Despite the rain, she walked to the train station. It was a kilometre, but Theresa didn't mind. Her car was being moved for her by Hermes. She swung her backpack onto her back, having said as many goodbyes as necessary.

Rain pattered down on her immediately as she stepped onto the empty footpath and mostly deserted road. The smell of damp and calm swept in as she took a breath, and the rain drops on her cheeks felt like cold tears. The air, the cool, the soft wind and the rain: it was refreshing. Her hair began to sink down with the weight, her shoes already wet and moist inside. She would look a wreck when she arrived at the station, but she didn't really care. No one else would look any better, and she didn't want to attract attention anyway.

Her feet carried her onwards, eyes watching the slow hubbub of life in rain. The spitting of raindrops filled her ears, mingled with car horns and conversations snatched from somewhere else. Theresa never did mind the rain. The cool was bliss to her skin, a kiss from the clouds, even if it meant her clothes were wet. She looked up into the grey sky and a sense of hope filled her, creeping from her feet and seizing her mind with it's warm, bubbly way. A faint smile touched her lips. She was nearly there now, at the station as she took her last glance at the constant, loving sky of New Olympia she had grown to know. She let her faint smile become a real one as a tiny tear slid down her cheek. It was a lot to leave behind.

As she stepped into the station, Theresa felt light. It had been a crazy ride, this experience. It might not have ended the way it should have, but hey: here she was, about to start her new life. She could travel now: move to Paris as she'd always wanted. Study journalism, write about crazy affairs and meet wonderful new people. Learn to love again. _From one world to another,_ she thought.

A hand, large and firm, seized her wrist in her moment of thought. Fear surged through her, buzzing the muscles into action as she delivered a flying kick to her assailant, knocking them backwards and onto the ground as she whirled around to see them. _You messed with the wrong girl,_ she was about to say. Except that she knew this person. The brown hair and brown eyes, ugly yellow and purple jumper soaked with rain- of course she knew him.

"Jay?" She asked, her voice betraying her shock as he got up off the ground, dusting himself off. She had half a mind to kick him back down again. He deserved it, after all.

"Theresa, I-"

"I have a train to catch."

His eyes met hers then for the first time in months. He gazed at her honestly.

"I owe you an apology. I-I'm sorry, Theresa." He was biting his lip, hands awkwardly in pockets as the rain dripped off him.

What could Theresa do, but accept it? Here she was, off to the other side of the world, never to see him again: and she had to get onto her train. Theresa wasn't sure if she was ready to forgive him yet, even if she knew she just wanted to see him smile again.

"It's okay- you tried to do the right thing." That was the best she could manage. She turned now, ready to head off towards the ticket machine.

"Theresa, stop. Please." He added, desperate. She turned back to him again, meeting his eyes once more. "You deserve better than how I treated you, okay? I know I was stupid, too caught up in myself. I-I don't know what else I can say, except that I'm sorry." Theresa's heart softened a little, although she still didn't have it in her to forgive him fully.

"Jay, I'm sorry too. I'm sorry it ended this way, okay? But I really have to go-"

"You can't leave." Confusion crossed Theresa's face for a moment, her mind blank with uncertainty. What did he mean?

"He's back, Theresa."

Three words was all it took. Paris, in all it's dreamlike beauty, was blown away like smoke in the wind. So was that dream job, studying in French, leaving it all behind for a new life. All gone.

And in that moment, Theresa didn't know whether to laugh or cry.


	8. Winter

**Hey! Good to see you, if you're reading this ^-^ Anyway, lately I've been using OTP prompts to get creative, and one of them was "Winter"- this was the writing that came of it. Hope you like it, please review! (especially nice reviews. Nice reviews are the greatest thing ever. No such thing as too many.)**

* * *

><p>Winter passed through the brownstone like a snow storm, wrapping her cold arms around the heroes and squeezing them tight.<p>

For Archie, winter was cold. Cold and distant and empty.

"Hey, Atlanta…"

Her tired eyes met his as she looked up from hanging her wet clothes in front of the heater, soaked from the recent snow they'd endured as they walked home from school. Her body was soaked with tiredness, and lethargy, ache and exhaustion. Nonetheless, Atlanta responded.

"Yea, Archie?" She wiped frost off her brow, before removing her mittens altogether and throwing them at the carpeted ground in dismay.

"Did you want to, maybe, see that new movie they've got showing at the moment? The one with Angelina Jolie? I heard it was feminine."

Atlanta sighed.

"Feminist, you mean?"

"Yea." Said Archie, rubbing his hands together to hide his embarrassment. "Yea, that."

Atlanta smiled at Archie, but tiredly.

"Maybe after the worst of this winter passes. Once exams are over, and we're seeing less of Cronus again."

"But, I thought-"

"Not now, Archie." Atlanta gave Archie a peck on the cheek as she passed him, but it wasn't the same. Her lips were cold from the sleet, and there was no warmth or intimacy behind them.

* * *

><p>"For such an expensive car, why isn't it easier to push?" Grunted Herry, as he pushed the red convertible through the snow with all his might. Theresa was alongside him, also pushing the car down the driveway, puffing with the effort.<p>

"I…" she huffed, "I didn't choose it because it was easy to push through the snow, you know."

"Well, keep it in mind," Herry huffed, face turning as red as the car itself, "for next time." As Theresa went to give the car another shove, her feet slipped in the sleet and she faceplanted onto the driveway.

"Ugh!" She huffed, pulling herself up to sit on the ground, snow sticking to her shirt. "As if today hasn't been bad enough already!" She began to dust herself off, ignoring Herry as he continued to push at the car. "What am I supposed to do?"

"You could help me push this car!" Herry muttered under his breath, but Theresa seemed oblivious to him.

"I mean, first this driveway got all bogged, then Persephone's off in the Underworld, and not to mention Jay and his new girl-" Before Theresa could finish whatever long winded rant remained, a snowball hit her right in the chest, icy and hard.

"Great shot, Neil!" Yelled Odie, bounding across the snowy yard to wherever Neil was hiding. However, Odie didn't make it more than five steps before a snowball lobbed by Herry hit him smack in the face.

"My glasses!"

Herry chuckled, dusting his hands off. "So, you wanna aim for Neil or Odie?" He asked Theresa, grinning. She pushed herself off the ground.

"Neil's just behind the wall, around the corner of the house."

"How?" Herry began to ask as Theresa smiled gently, tapping her forehead.

"Okay," said Herry, "I'll take Odie, and while I do that, you need to-"

"Herry, duck!" She yelled, yanking Herry down by his shoulders as a snowball soared over his head, thrown by either Neil or Odie, both of whom now stood in the open, staring at them.

A glance passed between Herry and Theresa, and without a word they both began scooping the snow furiously, and soon enough the war had begun.

* * *

><p>Jay sat in the toasty cafe, one hand holding the spoon that twirled in his coffee, lost in thought. <em>Theresa would tell me off for brooding if she was here. <em>No, Jay told himself. He shook his head, just a little, to try and refresh his mind. She's not here though, and Juliet is.

"So," he began, trying to rid himself of his own thoughts, "what do you want to do after you graduate?" he asked the brunette whom sat opposite him. She looked up from her phone, smiling kindly at him.

"I'm not really sure. I guess it depends on my marks. What about you?" She asked, her sweet melodic voice soothing Jay. _It's not like you were dating anyway, _he told himself. "Erm… I'm not really sure either." He smiled apologetically, and genuinely now. "Maybe something to do with astronomy, or sailing?" He gave a light laugh. "I'm having enough trouble imaging myself surviving these exams, let alone what comes after." She laughed at that too, her pearly white teeth forming a perfect smile as her delicate laugh tinkled. Her hand reached to his under the table, and held it softly, warmly.

"Whatever you do, I'm sure it'll be the right thing." She said as she held his hand.

_Well, I hope you're right, _thought Jay, with a rueful smile.


	9. Privacy

"Not that way, Archie!"

"Ahh, ahh, ahh no!"

"Come on, come on!"

"That's it now, oh yeah!"

Neil walked up the hallway, his ear pressed to the wall, trying to detect the source of the noise. As he reached Archie's door, he heard something that gave him chills to the bone: a series of grunts, gasps and screams of "Agh!".

"Nearly there, AHH AHH!"

Neil leaned violently away from the door upon hearing that. Was that… was that Atlanta's voice? This was gossip too juicy to savour alone. Neil whipped out his PMR, speed dialling the rest of the team. Even as he typed, more grunts echoed from the room.

Herry was first, waltzing in from the kitchen, munching on a muesli bar. It was a rare sight for Herry not to be munching on something these days.

"What's up, Neil? Dye your hair the wrong colour?" Asked Herry. Neil pointed to the door, and in response, a cry of "Ahh, that's it! Come on baby!" echoed through the door.

"Are you for real? Who's in there?" Herry rushed over to the door, pressing his ear to the side.

"What's up, guys? Asked Theresa, now coming out of her room. Neil winked.

"You'll like this." Said Neil, as another gasp of frustration (or joy, Neil supposed) came out from the door.

"What?!" Theresa gasped in a whisper, tip toeing over to the door and shoving Herry aside. "This cannot be happening. They are so not at that stage."

"What's happening?" Asked Odie, emerging from the basement, rubbing his eyes. "This better be good."

"Oh, it is." Assured Herry, chuckling his rolling laugh. "They're gonna get it sooo bad."

"Is that… Archie and Atlanta?" Asked Odie, perplexed. Another grunt echoed from the room.

"Uh, uh, uh, come on!" That was definitely Atlanta's voice. Odie shoved in, now pressing an ear to the door as well.

The group all pressed against the door, breathing quietly, trying not to be heard as they giggled every time another grunt or cry of "Goddammit!" came through the door.

"You know, I always kinda thought you and Jay would be the first to do this, not those two." Commented Herry. Theresa blushed as red as a beetroot, but was saved from answering by Jay, whom had just walked in.

"Hey guys, sorry I took so long, I came as fast as I could… guys?" Jay took in the scene, Theresa blushing bright red, and Neil, Odie and Herry all pressing their ears to the door. Even as Jay took it all in, a cry of "Agghh! Deep breaths, come on!" Then he understood.

"No way. Archie and Atlanta?" He headed over, listening intently. "Now this is too good to be true."

The yelling and grunting and gasping began to reach a climax as they listened, and the team leaned in, pressing hard against the door to hear it all. They squished in, everyone pressing against each other.

"Hey, who touched my butt?" Demanded Neil, his voice spiky. Herry went to elbow him to keep him quiet, but missed and hit the doorknob, pushing it down. The door opened, and the team tumbled through the doorway. First Herry fell, who grabbed Neil, who grabbed Odie, who grabbed Theresa, who grabbed Jay as 5/7 of the team found themselves stacked on top of one another.

They all peered up, expecting to see a very embarrassed Archie and Atlanta in the bed.

Instead, the bed was empty, although unmade. Archie and Atlanta both held wii controllers, and were focussed intently upon the game in front of them: it was Rainbow Road, on Mariokart.

Atlanta turned around. "Guys? Umm… what are you all doing here?"

The team all grinned sheepishly, answering in unison.

"Nothing…"


	10. Study Sessions

**I'm not so sure about this chapter... But here it is. I've always been quite interested in the dynamic between Neil and Theresa- they make really good friends. Just so you know: this isn't meant to be related to any other chapter. It's all nicely random, totally unplanned unconnected drabble. For your convenience ;) As always, your reviews mean the world to me so speak up! If there was a certain chapter or aspect you like, please tell me- I want to know what people like! **

"He- he's not my boyfriend!" Theresa sputtered at Neil. "We're just… friends."

Neil looked at Theresa quizzically.

"Good friends, then." She added, putting down the pen she'd been using to attempt to get some schoolwork done. She tore out the page, crumpling it up and pegging it at Neil's head. Neil ducked and missed it easily.

"Ooh, did that have a sketch of Jay on it?" He teased, making as if he was about to pick it up.

"No. It just looked untidy. I like my notes neat."

"Sure, sure." He goaded, before turning back to his biology homework.

After a moment, Neil sighed. "Theresa, _when _are you two going to get together already?"

"Neil, we've just been through this." Theresa said, an edge of frustration in her voice. "We're _friends._" For good measure, she wrote the word in capital letters on her paper, and held it up for Neil. "A-and anyway, he asked Juliet to the prom."

"Really?" Neil asked, genuine surprise in his voice. Jay and Theresa were just about official: well, to anyone but Jay and Theresa.

"Well… not yet." Theresa admitted. "But the way he's been looking at her-"

"Theresa, the guy _likes_ you. A lot." Theresa blushed at that, her eyes darting away from Neil's. Yup, thought Neil, definitely lovestruck. Personally, he thought Theresa could do a little bit better.

"Really?" She couldn't hide her curiosity. "I mean, how can you be sure?"

Oh, she was just fishing for compliments now.

"I have my ways."

"Neil!" Her eyes pierced his, and she gave Neil her best death stare. It worked: Neil found himself cowering.

"Okay, okay. Well, there's that time he-"

The door to the library in which the pair were studying was flung open, and bounced off the hinges.

"Hey guys!" said Herry cheerily, grinning as usual. "Mind if I join you? Jay said you guys were doing schoolwork in here." Herry peered at his peers, noting their shocked expressions. He glanced to the door, which had left a dint in the wall because it was slammed open so hard. Herry's grin turned sheepish. "Oops. I gotta learn to control that."

Herry pulled up a chair next to Theresa, and opposite Neil, noisily dropping his books on the desk and sliding his chair in.

"So, what were you guys talking about?"

Neil grinned. "Well, before you came stomping in, Theresa and I were talking about how Jay-"

Suddenly, the book that Neil had been resting his hand on slammed shut, crushing his fingers within it's heavy, papery sides.

"Yeeee-ouch!" Neil yelped, pulling his hand out of the book and ignoring Theresa's pointed look.

"Sorry, what?" Asked Herry.

"About… about how good a leader Jay is. Right, Theresa?" Asked Neil, his eyes watering and murderous.

"Oh, that's funny." Said Herry. "For a second, I thought you guys were gonna say you'd been talking about Jay and Theresa." Herry turned to look at Theresa now. "Are you guys official yet, or what?"

Theresa groaned, slamming her face into the book she was reading. Even with her face to the paper, both Herry and Neil could hear the word she muttered:

"Friends."


	11. Ice Bucket Challenge

**I realised something the other day. I think you're either an AA shipper or a JT shipper at heart. It just is, and there's no in between. Which one are you guys? Can you guess which one I am? ;) As always, thank you for reading!**

Neil stood in the backyard of the Brownstone, his hands clutching a huge bucket filled with ice. The day was sunny, hot with a warm summer breeze wafting through the backyard as Neil stood there. Of course he would get perfect weather on the day he undertook the ice bucket challenge.

"You know, you could've just paid the hundred bucks." Theresa said from behind the camera she held.

"One hundred dollars is a lot of money! I've been saving to hire a certain photographer. Anyway, this makes me look tough."

"Was it really necessary to do it with the shirt off?" She asked, laughing.

Neil smiled knowingly. "Of course! I don't do all this work for nothing!"

Theresa rolled her eyes. "Okay then, let's get rolling. You promised not to nominate me if I filmed you."

"Oh, you know you wanted to anyway!" He teased, before briefly arranging his features for the camera. "Okay, I'm ready to roll. Lights, camera, ACTION!"

Theresa began filming.

"Hi, it's Neil here. I was nominated for the ice bucket challenge by Kelsey -yea thanks, Kelsey!- and my ten dollars is going to ALS." Theresa nodded at Neil, giving him a thumbs up.

"Okay…" he began, voice a little shaky. "Here goes!" Neil winked, before lifting up the huge bucket and pouring it over his head. "Ooof!" He gasped, flexing his muscles as the cascade of ice rained down on him as he stood in the sunlight. Theresa laughed at that, but she held the camera still.

"My nominations are: Jay, Herry, Odie, Archie, Atlanta, and… Theresa!" He grinned wickedly. Theresa stopped the film before she exclaimed, "We had a deal!"

"Well I broke it, honey." Neil winked.

_***the next day***_

The team stood lined up in their day clothes, everyone carrying their own bucket filled with ice and water, all glaring mutinously at Neil as he held the camera.

"Chillax, guys! It's for charity!"

They kept glaring at him. The wind gusted through, a colder wind than the previous day. Odie shivered in his wetsuit and goggles.

"Jay, you first." Said Neil.

Jay sighed, bracing himself ever-so-stoically. "Here goes…"

Jay stepped out of the line, walking up into the view of the camera.

"Okay… so it's, uh, Jay here…" He began, shy when in front of a camera. "I was nominated by Neil, and my ten dollars is going to, uh, Red Cross." He took a deep breath, getting ready to lift his bucket. As he closed his eyes, Theresa sprinted across with her own bucket and dumped it on him.

"Hey!" He yelled, opening his eyes, now soaking. "Theresa!"

He ran with his bucket, straight at Theresa. As he emptied his bucket in her direction, she dove to the side: instead, Herry copped the full impact of it.

"Hey! What was that for?!" Herry demanded, glaring at Jay.

"Whoops, sorry, I was kinda aiming for Theresa…"

Herry ran at Jay, wielding his bucket. Theresa dusted herself off, darting over to Atlanta, who was giggling at the whole affair, still perfectly dry as she watched Jay getting soaked by Herry.

"Good dodge!" She said to Theresa, nudging her. Theresa grinned.

"Yea, but someone needs to get Odie now." She whispered to Atlanta, watching Odie as he crept away, bucket in hand. They were about to move towards Odie when a shocking sensation of ice cascaded down the pair of them.

"That's for soaking me!" Yelled Jay, whom had grabbed the spare bucket of ice and poured it onto the girls.

"You!" Theresa exclaimed, murder in her eyes. Jay began to back away, Theresa chasing after him now. Atlanta, soaked now, turned to face Odie. She sped over to him, dumping her bucket over his head.

"Ahhh! Thanks for that!" Odie grumbled, eyeing off Atlanta angrily.

"Any time." Atlanta winked.

"Atlanta, watch out!" Yelled Theresa: Herry had the hose, and was now aiming for Atlanta, chuckling happily. Atlanta leapt out of the way of the hose, but Herry was not giving up yet. Meanwhile, Theresa was trying to bend the hose into a kink shape to stop Herry, whilst Jay was at the tap trying to make the water gush out faster.

As the whole affair ensued, Archie watched from his bedroom window. Right now, it seemed that his one hundred dollars had been well spent.


	12. Thunder

"I hate the rain." Archie complained, pulling his hood up to cover his hair. Atlanta walked beside him, hands in her pockets.

"Why?"

"You get all… wet and stuff." They were walking out of the cinema, still under cover at the moment. Other couples were milling around, making conversation about the movie as they headed out towards the dreary day. Atlanta smiled in spite of herself, given how gingerly Archie was walking.

"So, what did you think of the movie?" She asked.

"That main chick, the one who kept kicking everyone's butts? She was pretty cool." Said Archie, whom was now rubbing his hands together. "But…"

"Yea?" Atlanta stopped now, and they stood at the doors to the cinema.

"She's not as cool as you." Archie smiled, looking Atlanta in the eye.

Atlanta leaned in closer to Archie, on her tippy toes. "Yea, but you're pretty rad too, you know." Archie met her eyes, and they leaned in, hands laced together. Just as Archie shut his eyes, a huge crack of thunder clapped above their heads. Archie's eyes flew open, and leapt into Atlanta's arms, clinging onto her neck.

"Argh!" She grunted, catching him, shocked out of her romantic reverie. "Archie!"

Archie smiled sheepishly. "I kinda don't really like thunder."

"Ya think?" Asked Atlanta, as she gently let him go, and Archie returned to a standing position.

"Everyone has fears!" Archie grumbled, defensively as he crossed his arms- all of his terrified rabbit demeanour was gone now.

"You know what they say about fixing fears!" Atlanta winked, grabbing Archie's hand.

"Huh?" He asked, as she yanked him out into the rain. Archie grabbed at his hood, trying to pull it more tightly over his head as he stumbled behind her, still holding Atlanta's hand.

"You gotta face 'em!" She yelled, as the rain began to drench them both. Another huge clap of thunder shook through Archie's bones, loud enough to be overheard. He grasped Atlanta's now soaked hand as tightly as he could.


	13. Halloween

**This is set after episode 8, See You at the Crossroads. I've always wished that episode could have been drawn together a little more neatly at the end, because it raises so many cute moments. Like, the producers had a great opportunity for fluff AND THEY DIDN'T TAKE IT. Anyway, tell me what you think!**

"Well, that's my halloween done and dusted for this year." Jay's voice came from behind Theresa, as she stood on the rooftop, gazing out across at the quiet night. He came and stood next to her, her green eyes unfocussed as she smiled gently.

"Definitely enough for one night." Theresa agreed, biting her lip. Her nails scratched against the concrete railing, fingers moving minutely.

"You did good today, Theresa. Especially that move with the cake. I couldn't throw it that accurately if I tried." Jay said warmly, chuckling lightly.

"Yea…" Theresa trailed off now, still looking into the distance for some unknown sign. The night was fairly quiet, and only distant cars and a myriad of small animal noises blanketed the air. The wind was delicate, toying with Theresa's hair.

"What's wrong?" Jay asked gently.

Theresa took a moment before she said the words, but when they came they were quiet and clear. "It's my mother's anniversary."

Jay took a moment to digest Theresa's words, nearly asking: "Of what?" before he realised.

"Oh." Jay responded, before adding, "On halloween?"

"Yea. I guess we're a bit of an unlucky family."

"Sorry. I didn't mean to bring it up…"

"No, it's fine. I was ten when she died. But I don't think about it too much any more."

"Too painful?" Jay asked.

"No, not painful…" Theresa began, "but you can't live with their ghost forever, I guess."

"I guess not…" Jay said, trying to be helpful. He felt like a bit of a spanner in the conversation. Theresa smiled at him, at his genuine attempts at listening.

"It's okay." She said, still gazing out at the deep black of the night. "No one really knows how to talk about it. You're doing fine."

"Well, that's good to know." Jay said, sighing as he rubbed his hands together in the cool air. "At least I did something right today." Jay leant over the concrete bannister, his hands laced together, wringing.

Theresa turned fully towards Jay now, frustrated. "Jay, you did the best you could today. We're just 7 mortal teenagers and Hecate is the goddess of Witchcraft. I think we did pretty well, considering." She said, a quiet fire in her eyes. "And you have _got _ to lighten up a little!" Theresa added, jabbing Jay in the arm.

"Yea, but Hecate caught you, and I-"

"Jay, she had almost all of us at one point or another. We got those torches in the end. Hecate is back in her lair, and everything's exactly how it should be. So let it go!" Theresa said, exasperatedly at the end.

Jay smiled in spite of Theresa, his shoulders loosing their tense stance. "Maybe you're right."

Theresa smiled too now, leaning forward over the railing to feel the breeze better.

"And you know, you were kind of amazing back there." Jay added, looking at Theresa's long, stretched form as she drew in the night's air.

"Thanks." She said genuinely, leaning back now and stepping back from the railing altogether. "Although it would have been much easier if there _was _a killer surprise in that cake." She winked, nudging Jay as she headed back inside. Jay grinned to himself, before he got up, following Theresa down the stairs and back into the Brownstone.


	14. Black

It was Odie's rule of thumb to elect for the black pieces when playing chess. The logic was that if the rest of the world was going to treat him differently for being black, he might as well use that colour when beating them.

He now stared intently at the chess board, determined to find a chink in the armour. The small, glossy figurines seemed so insubstantial, so silly when he considered how much stress they gave him. He drummed his fingers on the table, thinking again.

"Are you planning on making a move sometime soon?" She asked from across the table, confident and teasing. Her short blonde hair titled to the side with her head, her blue eyes peering quietly at Odie, a half smile tugging at one side of her lips.

Odie had never, _never _been beaten at school chess.

And never by a girl.

Not that he was sexist, or anything. It wasn't that girls were inferior or stupid or whatever. But there was no way Odie could let a girl beat him. Not a girl like this, either: her denim miniskirt and her t-shirt with the periodic table on it, sleeves rolled up to reveal tanned, slender arms: she was by all means a bimbo. Definitely not the sort of person Odie could afford to lose his first chess match to.

Already he'd been in check twice. Each time he'd moved his piece, her bell like voice had pealed, "Check", followed by a light giggle. Who giggled in the middle of a chess match?! Her bangled hand had quietly lifted her pieces, her perfect teeth flashing a million dollar smile.

Well, if nothing else, this sure was going to be a chess match Odie would remember.


	15. Sparring

Her years spent sparring had certainly taught Theresa a lot of things, but there was one lesson that always came back to her, again and again, like a nightmare that plagues your sleep.

You could look your opponents up and down. You could know exactly what training they'd done and how fit they were and what their style was. They could be boy or girl, fat or thin, weak, strong, weedy, tired; your opponent could be anything in the world, but the only time you were sure to win was if you wanted it more.

It was Theresa's one flaw that she tended to forget this simple fact.

* * *

><p>The first day the team had met, Ares had organised them into groups. "In each group, I've put some strong fighters, and some weaker ones. I want you all to learn from each other today." He'd boomed, whistle in hand. Theresa surveyed her group: Jay, Archie, Herry and herself.<p>

Unless Theresa was very much mistaken, she was definitely meant to be one of the weaker ones. She'd decided in that moment that it was Ares' turn to learn her lesson.

Jay had been up first, his blows uniform and boring, always straight to the chest or shoulder. This should be easy, she'd thought. But that first day, when they'd both found themselves puffing and sweating, eyes flashing determinedly at each other, she'd realised that an ability to learn from your errors and a dogged determination was as dangerous as any round house kick Theresa might send his way.

Not that she'd let Jay realise that, of course. A well placed kick coupled with a neat block and an elbow to the rib saw Theresa give a sigh of relief before she helped Jay back up.

_Two to go._

Theresa's spar with Herry was a new ballpark again. For such a big guy, she'd gone in planning nothing but her best shots and the quickest tactics- no chances were going to be taken here. Immediately as they'd began she had been dodging quickly, her mind glued only to his next punch and where she would go. Her focus proved to be no match for the guy: maybe she was too quick or he was too gentle, but his blows always seemed easy enough to dodge and her hits met their mark all too quickly.

_One to go._

Wonky ankle, pasty white kid, loose sandals: Archie was never meant to put up a challenge.

You'd have thought Theresa had learnt her lesson by then.

The first thing about Archie was that he was aggressive. Unlike Herry, whom was calm when he missed a punch, or Jay who didn't seem to put all his force behind his fist, Archie left nothing to chance. Every shot was meant to hit, and to win.

It had only taken two hits before Theresa realised she wasn't going to beat this kid easily. Her dodging that had so easily evaded Herry now occasionally copped a fist, and her combinations that pushed Jay off the edge were simply part of the fight for Archie. The right hook Theresa so prided herself on was a hit to Archie, but nothing he couldn't take.

But even Archie had his weaknesses.

It was as Theresa drew in another tight, desperate breath that she finally realised Archie's one fault. His eyes scanned across her, taking in her heaving chest, the sweat that dripped down her arms and made her hair cling to her face, her feet slower now with fatigue, arms shaking from being held up for so long. He realised it: he was the stronger one. As the thought flashed through his eyes and he went in for the victory, Theresa took advantage of Archie's one weakness: he thought he'd won.

She'd offered to help him up afterwards, but he'd just thrown Theresa a filthy look before getting up on his own, ignoring her outstretched hand and tired smile.

After all, Archie never lost. And never to a girl he'd just met.


	16. 97

"Students, I am sorry to announce that I am rather disappointed with the results of your last essay." The teacher said, glaring at the students through her red rimmed glasses. All students had agreed that this teacher had an uncanny ability to manage to give almost every student the evil eye in one glance across the classroom.

Even now, the class cowered a little. What small whispered conversations there were did not last.

"The class average was 60%." She paused, her black eyes flitting to Odie. "Only one student did as they were asked in the paper, and for that they have been rewarded with a mark of 97%."

She swallowed, taking her time with the announcement. It was rare to get the kids' attention for long, and she planned to use her time to make them sweat.

"That student was Neil."

"Yea, baby!" Neil yelled, arms in the air.

The class gave a collective gasp of surprise, and all eyes turned to the blonde haired boy seated up the back, whom was normally in the process of filing his nails at this stage of class.

Herry, whom was seated next to Odie, leant over to his buddy to whisper in his ear.

"Really?"

* * *

><p>"97, 97, 97, 97!" Neil paraded about as the group cleaned up that night, Neil's tea towel notoriously dry.<p>

"We heard, Neil." Atlanta grumbled, scrubbing rather ferociously at a dry plate.

"Yea, we got the memo." Archie added.

"You sure you've told us enough times?" Asked Jay from the kitchen table. "You might wanna repeat it again, I don't think Zeus heard."

"NINETY-" Neil began, at the top of his lungs.

"Shut up!" Was the communal groan from the heroes.

Neil grinned. This was only the beginning. He would, in all likelihood, never repeat this feat.

So he was going to milk it for all it was worth.

* * *

><p>Theresa rubbed at her eyes, still waking up properly. Mornings after late nights with Persephone were never really much fun. As she ran her fingers through her hair, peering at her reflection, Theresa saw that someone had written on the mirror.<p>

Theresa yawned, trying to clear her vision so she could see. As her eyes focused, a number on the mirror became obvious.

97.

"Neil!" Theresa began, stalking off to his room.

* * *

><p>Herry whistled merrily as he waltzed out to his truck, swinging his keys around his finger. The air was clear, the birds were singing, the breeze was warm: and Neil wasn't even awake yet. Herry grinned to himself as he opened up the garage door.<p>

He froze in the morning light at the sight of his car. Unless Herry needed glasses, someone had spray painted the number 97 onto the bonnet of his truck.

And Herry was pretty sure he knew who.

* * *

><p>The night was cool as Jay and Odie gathered around the telescope, the old contraption creaking and squeaking as Jay's practiced hands turned the various knobs and he tried to orient it before taking a peek.<p>

"So, you reckon there's gonna be a meteor shower tonight, huh?" Jay asked Odie, whom was peering into the inky sky.

"Yea, it was forecast. Should be a good one." Odie responded, hands in his pockets.

"Well, hey, maybe it's a good omen for our fight against Cronus." Jay put in, wiping the telescope's long shaft as he squinted up into the sky. "Didn't you say you wanted to look at something?" He asked.

"Oh, right. Yea, I wouldn't mind a glance at Venus." Odie said casually, heading over to the telescope. He put his eye to the lens, hands on the various dials.

"Jay, it's a bit blurry…"

"I cleaned it last time I looked."

"I think you left the cap on." Odie said, perplexed. Jay peered around the end of the telescope.

"No, there's no lens cap on here…"

"Well I can't see anything."

"Ugh!" Jay huffed suddenly.

"What happened?" Asked Odie, taking his eye away from the lens. "Are you okay, Jay?"

Jay was furiously scrubbing at the telescope lens with his rag.

"Jay?" Odie enquired.

"Someone's written something on here in permanent marker." Said Jay, scrubbing furiously. Odie leant around for a closer look.

"Oh…" He began. "Jay, I think it says 97."

They both stood in angered silence for a moment, their eyebrows in the air. And then Jay spoke angrily.

"Neil."

* * *

><p>Atlanta was running along the path, arms swinging as she jogged easily along the trail, her headphones playing her favourite song. <em>Ahh, no Neil and his 97's here…<em> Thought Atlanta happily, smiling to herself. _Just me and my music._ She picked it up a little, breathing in carefully as she did so.

Her song began to end, and a crackle of static came through.  
>"Huh…" Atlanta started. None of her songs started like this.<p>

As she ran through the woods, a familiar voice found itself propelled into her ears, saying the same words over and over again.

_"97 97 97 97 97…"_

It was all Atlanta could do to not simply throw the ipod into the lake altogether.

* * *

><p>Archie donned his usual blue jacket, zipping it up happily. It had been almost a week since the whole "97" affair -that was what the team had termed the traumatic event- and Archie was feeling rather pleased to have avoided the worst of Neil's ridiculing. From Odie finding his locker code changed to 97 (only after he interrogated Neil) to Herry finding all his books to have 97 written on every page to Theresa having every speed on the speedometer of her car erased except for 97, the team had been well and truly sick of Neil by the end of the week.<p>

Archie went to leave his room, but as he passed his mirror something on the back of his jacket caught his eye. Archie took a few steps back, staring furtively into the mirror at the gold stitching pattern on the back of his jumper. The sewing job was perhaps a little dodgy, but it was painfully clear to Archie that someone had clumsily sewn the number "97" onto the back of his jumper in gold stitching.

And that someone was likely named Neil.


	17. Sorry

Just a little piece exploring what happens when members of the canon couples date someone else. I'm sorry I haven't been updating as much, school has been crazy. As always, FEEDBACK. PLEASE. And prompts would be A+ because my brain is kind of low on inspiration. Maybe I'd be more inspired if I actually had a love life... Kidding, I actually love being single. Also, HoneyGoddess57 I love you, and thanks for all the reviews ^-^

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><p>"Theresa, can you stay back and help me clean up?" Jay's voice sliced through Theresa's reverie of thought, calling calmly from behind her. Theresa felt her cheeks grow hot, but forced herself to turn head back towards the gym.<p>

"Sure, Jay." She kept her eyes downcast, failing to meet his eager glance as she passed him and began picking up cones. Jay seemed to consider following her for a moment, but instead kept on stacking Herry's weights. The empty gym rang out with the sound of Theresa's lithe footsteps as she went from each corner, and of the "pat, pat" of each weight Jay stacked. Every now and again, Theresa heard Jay's quiet breathing from across the auditorium.

She didn't really want to talk.

Jay drew in a deep breath as he walked over to where Theresa stood piling the cones, her back facing towards him, almost deliberately away. He figured he'd earned it.

Jay cleared his throat to speak, but Theresa beat him to it, turning around to face him now.

"What do you want, Jay?" Her eyes were colder than usual, tired almost. Her hair was limp and her arms crossed.

"I just wanted explain me and Juliet. Honestly, it wasn't anything big. I just wanted to spend time with someone outside our little world, and she was… I dunno, easy to be with. I don't want this to be a problem for the team."

"It's okay, really." Theresa's eyes were still a little dead, her face impassive as they stood in the empty gym. Theresa looked pointedly off to the side, refusing to meet Jay's steady gaze.

"Theresa, if you're going to make this-"

"Jay, please. We'll always be here for you, 100%. You know it." She added, smiling a little now. The smile didn't quite reach her eyes, but at least Theresa was looking at Jay now.

Jay's next words were heartfelt. "Thanks, Theresa." She smiled gently in response, her arms falling out of their crossed position.

"I have to go, though. Class and all."

"Oh, sure." Jay said, stepping out of Theresa's way so she could leave. Her long red hair swished behind her as she walked, her bag hanging off her shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Jay pushed the words out of his mouth at her retreating figure, realising he couldn't leave them unsaid.

Theresa kept walking.

Perhaps she didn't hear Jay.

* * *

><p>"Arch… I'm sorry."<p>

Archie's back was still turned as he worked at the punching bag, his kicks and punches as fast and fierce as they'd ever been. He huffed and puffed, his feet bouncing off the ground repetitively as he went in, again and again.

"Arch…" Atlanta tried again. She sighed: she knew Archie would make this difficult. It was his nature.

"I'm busy, can't you see that?" Archie finally responded, angrily. He still hadn't turned around to meet Atlanta.

"You're always busy when I need to talk to you now."

The only sound that came from Archie was the rhythmic _punch, slap_ that came from Archie's meticulous hits of the punching bag. Each time the bag gave a little "oof", its soft material crunching under the impact. Archie gave a tiny huff of breath with each exertion.

"Archie, come on. You've gotta hear me out."

"I don't _have_ to do anything."

_Punch, kick. _

"We weren't even dating, Archie!"

More punches. More kicks.

"This isn't fair on me, and you know it."

The punches stopped.

"Not fair… not fair on you?!" He began, turning around. "You're hardly in a position to complain here!"

Atlanta crossed her arms, and looked Archie straight in the face.

"I'm not just gonna sit here and wait for you to work up the courage to ask me out. I'm allowed to date other guys."

Archie floundered. His first response was to turn back to the punching bag, but halfway through he decided otherwise and turned back to face Atlanta.

"Work up the courage to ask _you_ out? Oh, right, like I wanted to."

Atlanta bit her lip. "You didn't mean that."

"Maybe I did." Archie responded defiantly. "Like you'd know."

"Archie, this is getting stupid. I came here to apologise, not to be attacked."

"Well, maybe I'm not ready to hear it. Maybe I don't want your apologies."

"You're certainly acting like it." Atlanta spat, shaking her head. "I'm going."

"And take your apologies with you!" Yelled Archie after her, as Atlanta walked back up the stairs.

She sighed to herself as her feet began to climb the stairs. Were all guys this difficult?

But Atlanta already knew the answer to that question: only guys that really, really loved you.


	18. Morning

Look! I'm being a cool fanfiction writer and trying to update plenty! I mean, TWO new chapters in a day... that's, like, almost regular! Anyway, this piece is one morning told chronologically through seven pairs of eyes. Enjoy, and review :)

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><p><strong><em>4am<em>**

Theresa sat in the kitchen, the room dimly illuminated by the early dawn light, still waiting for the sun to rise. Her fingers were wrapped around her cup of double shot coffee, brewed extra strong to keep her from having to face the nightmare again. The heat of the mug was a welcome burn, a reminder that she was safely in reality now.

Theresa gave another yawn, stretching her lips and closing her eyes. It was 4:30 in the morning and already she felt exhausted, like she simply wanted to curl up and sleep.

It was going to be one of those days.

**_5am_**

Archie's eyes opened as his breath slid out of him, and he woke the same way he did every morning: calm, and early. The clock read 5am- not that Archie needed it. He couldn't sleep in past 5 if he tried. Most days it was a useful habit, but sometimes -like now, for instance- Archie's all-too-perfect body clock got in the way. Waking up at 5am when you only got home from chasing various immortal Gods at 3am just didn't have the same "It's morning, let's go and be active!" vibe as it did when you actually got more than 3 hours of sleep.

But, Archie was Archie, and he never missed a morning.

Archie's head was pounding as he pulled his clothes on, but already his bed was cold and he knew he'd never get back to sleep. If there was one thing Archie prided himself on, it was that he was rather good at functioning on low sleep.

Not that he'd mind a break, of course.

**_6am_**

Jay was yawning, stretching his arms out wide as he strolled into the familiar kitchen, spying Theresa's long red hair draped over the back of the chair.

"You're up early."

Theresa turned, and smiled upon seeing Jay. "Yea. Couldn't sleep."

"Late nights aren't your thing, huh?" Jay asked, fetching a muesli bar from the cupboard, his back cracking as he bent over.

"Not really…" Theresa was still fairly dazed, seeming to be in another world. Her hands clutched onto the cold, empty mug that had been filled hours ago.

"Yea, I'm feeling a bit knocked around after last night too." Jay offered, stretching and cracking his back.

"Fair enough." Theresa's response carried none of her usual verve, flat and monotonous in the early hours. Her expression remained one of stone.

Jay paused for a moment, peering quietly at Theresa. "Are you alright?"

Theresa gazed honestly at Jay. "I'm okay. Just tired."

"Well, we've got a full day of training ahead of us, you know."

"I know."

Jay paused awkwardly, not sure what to say now. Theresa was still staring off into the distance, but he wasn't really sure he could help her.

"Well, if you need me, I'm here to talk." He said, trying to meet her eyes. He failed. "But for now, I'm off to see Hera for a morning class."

"Sounds good." Theresa smiled, but it seemed more like she was stretching her lips rather than wanting to express any form of happiness. "See you, Jay."

Jay paused at the door, before deciding it was best to head off. "See you, Theresa."

**_7am_**

Odie's alarm buzzed, screaming into his unconscious mind as the dream he'd been having turned to a wisp of air, blown away by his alarm.

"Ughhhh…" Odie grumbled, squinting at the fuzzy "7" displayed on the alarm. "Just another half hour…" He reached over, groggily setting the alarm for 7:30. Anything to get more sleep. His vision was still fuzzy with sleep, and his fingers fumbled stupidly at the buttons as Odie yawned. Finally, the alarm was set, and Odie threw his head back into the pillows and the deep recess of sleep.

**_8am_**

Atlanta's tired feet carried her down the stairs and into the kitchen, still waking up. She rubbed her eyes as she entered the kitchen, spying Odie and Jay sitting at the kitchen table.

"Mor-morning" Atlanta yawned, as she walked over to the coffee machine.

"You're up late." Odie commented, already sitting with his laptop open. "Late night giant-hunting isn't your thing?"

"Very funny." Atlanta answered, boiling the kettle. She rubbed her eyes, yawning. "Ya know, Jay, maybe we could take a night off…?" Atlanta hinted tiredly, eyes staring listlessly at the bubbling kettle. Jay rolled his eyes, ignoring Atlanta's jibe.

"Aren't you normally sprinting around at this time in the morning?" Odie asked, typing away happily at his keypad.

"Anyone would be tired if they got home at 3am and woke up at 8. I gotta sleep."

"At least you're awake." Jay finally responded, sounding frustrated. "Herry and Neil are still sound asleep, and we're meant to be training soon."

Atlanta grinned. "You guys tried to wake Herry up yet? That guy sleeps like a log."

"We tried. But he's sound asleep."

"Duh." Said Atlanta, sitting down with her coffee. "And I take it you guys aren't game to interrupt Neil's beauty sleep."

Odie and Jay shared a look before Odie spoke up.

"Atlanta, do we look crazy to you?"

**_9am_**

_THUMP. _

_THUMP._

"Herry! HERRY! Get up!"

The voices were distant, as if they were in a dream.

"Go away…" Herry mumbled, swatting at the air. His eyes drifted shut again.

_THUMP._

_CRASH._

"Herry!"

Herry rolled over.

"Whaaaaat?" He asked, almost too tired to keep his mouth open.

"Training soon! Get up!"

Herry scrunched his eyes, then forced them open.

"Jay, is that you?"

"No, it's Archie. I'm trying to save your butt. Jay's having one of his days."

Archie's words sent an electric current through Herry. He threw off his blanket, shoving himself upright- too fast. The blood rushed to Herry's head and the room disappeared in a swaying dream. Unperturbed, Herry stumbled blindly across the room to his clothes, picking up whatever item his hands touched.

"Okay, tell Jay I'm coming!" Herry yelled at the door as he put his shirt on backwards.

The last thing Herry wanted was to be on the receiving end of Jay's temper.

**_10am_**

Neil strolled out of the bathroom, his hair freshly blow-dried now, and feeling very warm and fuzzy for it. His skin was moisturised and fresh, his eyes had no bags under them (for once- the whole "fighting an immortal God" thing tended to make beauty sleep a rarity) and his teeth were sparkling clean. People might mock Neil for his grooming habits, but they sure made him feel on top of the world.

Well, until Neil had to face training with a cranky Jay.

"Neil! What took you so long?" Jay harassed Neil as he arrived late to training- as usual.

Neil couldn't resist. "Well, I had to shower, and blow dry my hair, and moisturise, and today was exfoliation day…" Neil began, watching Jay try to hide his complete and utter frustration. Man, Neil wasn't the only one who needed a beauty sleep around here.

"Neil…" Jay began, obviously fuming, "Go over there. Now. Train."

Neil hurriedly skittered over to where Jay pointed, which was conveniently next to Theresa. If anyone could help out right now, it was her. As Jay turned to talk to Herry and Archie, Neil leaned over and whispered in Theresa's ear.

"What happened to Jay today, huh?"

"I know, I hate it when he's like this." Theresa agreed, her arms crossed.

"Can't you, like, bewitch him or something?"

"How powerful do you think I am?!" Theresa hissed. "Cronus couldn't stop him at this rate!"

"Can't we just unleash him onto Cronus then?" Neil suggested. It seemed a logical solution.

"Neil!" Jay barked, turning back to them. "Get to work! You too Theresa!"

Theresa sighed, and got down to start with some sit ups. "Cronus wouldn't stand a chance. It wouldn't be fair."

Neil couldn't help but agree.


	19. Spring

This is intended as a sequel to Winter, and maybe one day I'll actually put it in order! Anyway, enjoy :)

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><p>Archie's practised fingers were lacing up his runners, pulling the knots tight as always. Mornings were always Archie's favourite part of the day, even if he always felt a bit tired at first. The kitchen was empty for once, and Archie loved the awkward eeriness of seeing the usually-bustling area so devoid of people. As he stood up Archie heard soft, lithe footsteps padding down the stairs very quickly. He turned around, only to feel his heart quicken a little at the sight of Atlanta's shiny red hair.<p>

Atlanta looked as if she'd thrown her outfit on, and her runners were still unlaced as she stumbled into the kitchen.

"Atlanta?" Archie asked, standing awkwardly in the kitchen. "I didn't know you were one for early mornings…"

Atlanta, still flustered, turned to face Archie.

"Ahh, well, I dunno… I guess it's the first morning of spring. Too good to miss." She answered, sounding preoccupied.

"Yea, yea it's always nice when it gets a bit warmer." Archie answered, cursing himself for the butterflies in his stomach. _You should know better by now,_ Archie told himself.

"So you're up for your morning run, huh?" Atlanta asked, her eyes awkwardly avoiding Archie's.

"Uh, as always. Never missed a morning."

"Yea, I know…" Atlanta began, shyly wringing her hands. "So, is there space for two on your run?" She asked, smiling at Archie apologetically.

Archie stammered under her melting eyes. "Uh, o-of course." _There's always space for you, Atlanta._

"Well, what are you waiting for? Or are you afraid of being beaten by a girl?" Teased Atlanta, and for a moment Archie caught a glimpse of the daring in Atlanta's eye that he'd so missed. It was gone in a second, as Atlanta turned and sprinted towards the door, already ahead of Archie.

"Hey, wait!" Archie yelled, grabbing his PMR. "You can't just run off on me! Your shoelaces aren't even done up!"

"They're fine, and I just did!" Archie heard Atlanta yell from down the street. Archie smiled to himself as he began to pelt down the familiar street, Atlanta's red hair bobbing ahead of him.

Like old times.

* * *

><p>Neil stood outside the cafe with Theresa, wringing his hands nervously, his eyes darting about and taking in every passer-by in the street. In contrast Theresa was calm, her weight shifted to one leg.<p>

"You're really worried, huh?" She asked kindly, looking up at Neil.

"Great mind reading, Theresa." Neil answered, his eyes still searching everyone that passed them.

"I don't need to be psychic to see how nervous you are." Theresa responded. She reached across and wrapped her hand around Neil's, giving it a squeeze. "Don't worry so much. I'm sure it's the right thing."

Neil pulled out his mirror, obsessively checking his reflection.

"Neil?" She nudged him. "Come on, put the mirror away. You look fine."

"Are you sure?" His voice was smaller, higher. Theresa smiled serenely.

"You look great. _I'd_ date you."

"Yea, well, you might have to, after this."

"Neil, you look great. You're an awesome guy. How can any guy in his right mind resist?"

Neil sighed, folding his mirror away.

"Thanks for coming with me on this, Theresa."

Neil's phone vibrated with a message.

_I'm here, where are you?_

"Theresa, Theresa he's here!"

"Keep calm, then!" She responded, whispering. "Where is he?"

The pair scanned the vicinity outside the cafe, both trying (and failing to) look discrete.

"Neil…" Theresa asked after a moment. "Is that him?"

She pointed to a long, tall guy in his early 20's, with long brown hair pulled back into a low bun and tight skinny jeans, leaning against the glass wall of the cafe, texting.

"Neil?"

Neil gulped. "That looks like him."

"Well, come on then!" Theresa grabbed Neil's arm, pulling him along to see the guy.

"Umm, hey." Neil choked out, Theresa at his side. The man looked up from his phone, his brown eyes warm.

"Are you Neil?" He asked, perplexed, as he peered at Theresa whom was standing at Neil's side. She smiled kindly at the guy.

"Yea! You're Jason, then?"

The guy nodded, surveying them.

"Oh, this is Theresa, she came along as moral support." Neil said, his charisma ballooning by the minute.

"Yea, but I'll be off now." Theresa said, waving her car keys. "I've gotta go sailing with a friend this afternoon. Have fun Neil!" She said, winking at her friend.

Neil smiled gratefully before replying. "Okay. See you later, Theresa." He turned back to Jason, whom was rubbing his hands together now.

"So, you wanna head in?" Jason asked, gesturing towards the cafe with a shy smile.

"Sounds great to me."

A warm gust of spring air chased Neil as he entered the cafe, and a small smile touched his lips.

* * *

><p>The afternoon sun tickled Herry and Odie's backs as they sat on the rooftop, pens scratching away at their homework.<p>

"Odie..?" Herry began, leaning away from his paper.

"Yea?"

"I think I got this one."

Odie peered over at the maths question Herry pointed at, his glasses catching the light.

"Well, you've done this right, and that's good there, and what have you done there?" Odie asked, pointing at one stage of the question.

"Um… just substituted x for 5. Because it says here that it's a proof, not to find the answer."

Odie scratched his head.

"What's up, buddy? Have I done something wrong?" Asked Herry, worried now. Dammit, he thought he was so close with this one.

"No, not wrong. It's just that I hadn't thought of that."

"Really?" Herry couldn't help but ask, rubbing his chin.

"Yup." Odie grinned at Herry. "You know, I reckon you'll do alright in maths this year, Herry."

"You really think so?"

"Well, with a tutor like me, how can you not? We'll get those marks right up."

They both turned back to their schoolwork now, resuming their work. After a few minutes of work in silence, Herry quietly spoke up.

"It really is a great spring day, isn't it?"

* * *

><p>The crisp, salty sea air rushed into Jay's lungs as he stood at the helm, gazing happily across the sparkling blue water. As far as first days of spring went, today was pretty much perfect. Seized by a sudden urge, Jay grinned recklessly as he spun the wheel violently to the left, the boat keeling wildly -but Jay was in control. Mostly.<p>

"Hey! What was that for?!" Theresa demanded as she flew across the side of the boat, still clutching her book.

"Sorry, big wave." Jay yelled behind him, chuckling to himself.

"Oh sure. Like the last one, I suppose." She responded grumpily, flicking through the book as she tried to find where she was up to. "I only came with you if you promised I could catch up on school reading."

"It's not my fault if a big wave comes." Jay teased.

"You do know I can read your mind, right?" Theresa asked, still staring intently at her book, preoccupied with her book which was covered in droplets of water.

Jay smiled to himself. _Oh, if only you could._


End file.
